How did Juneteenth start?
The history of Juneteenth
I’m a professor at the University of Michigan, and while psychology is my discipline, I’ve had a longtime affiliation with Black Studies.
I talk to – and teach – my children about Black history. Both of them have heard of Juneteenth, the holiday many Americans are celebrating today.
But when I asked them about the history of Juneteenth, I was surprised that neither my 16-year-old son nor 12-year-old daughter could discuss its significance.
Juneteenth is the annual holiday recognizing the day enslaved African Americans in Texas finally learned that the Civil War had ended and they were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.
For more context, both of my children are honor students. My son, in particular, enjoys history, especially Black history. We’ve even lived in Texas.
While Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021, it remains less well known in comparison to other federal holidays.
And we should not take for granted that Americans have the opportunity to learn about the important history behind this holiday.
Juneteenth is American history
There is evidence that awareness of Juneteenth has risen among Americans. A recent YouGov survey found that 90% of Americans have heard of the holiday. Black Americans were more likely to say they plan to celebrate it and support its inclusion in the history curricula of public schools compared to white Americans and Hispanic Americans.
However, awareness of Juneteenth – as with my son and daughter – does not mean that people know the history behind it.
I take responsibility for not teaching them about the history of Juneteenth, but I assumed that they would have learned something about it in school. But, as I have previously written, because of the politicization of education, we unfortunately cannot always expect the history of Black people to be taught.
The reality is that the history of Juneteenth is not just Black history, it is American history. As Americans, we should all be invested in making sure that all American history is accessible to the public. However, the current political climate is a stark reminder that there are ongoing attempts to erase Black/American history. That all Americans would learn about the history and significance of Juneteenth is not inevitable or a foregone conclusion, especiallygiven the quiet deletion of Black history under the Trump administration.
Under the guise of eliminating all diversity, equity and inclusion topics and “improper, divisive-race-centered ideology,” federal agencies have censored information on their websites. The National Park Service initially tried to de-emphasize Harriet Tubman’s resistance to enslavement, but reversed its efforts after public outcry, while the Department of Defense removed and then reinstated information about baseball legend Jackie Robinson’s U.S. Army career. Apparently, highlighting a Black man’s service to his country is too close to embracing DEI.
Additional purging of Black history (and other diverse experiences) occurred when the Naval Academy Library removed 381 books. Examples of so-called DEI books included Maya Angelou’s semi-autobiography “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings,” Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to Be Anti-Racist,” as well as “divisive” books on the Ku Klux Klan and the history of lynching in America.
All American history should be taught, even the bad parts
Under the logic of the Trump administration, it is divisive to “over-” emphasize the bad parts of American history. A consultant to the Trump administration, attorney Lindsey Halligan, said that the Smithsonian needs “changing” because of the “improper ideology” of overemphasizing the negative aspects of American history that makes Americans grow further apart. Given the fact that Juneteenth acknowledges the freedom of enslaved Africans and the deliberate attempt by their White enslavers to resist news of their freedom, we should be concerned that the Trump administration may characterize this as “divisive” and “improper ideology” and could eventually prevent Americans from learning this history.
Imagine learning about the history of Juneteenth and finding out that whites in Texas were so mad about Black people’s displays of joy at freedom that they whipped them for celebrating and unleashed violent acts against them. According to Harvard historian Annette Gordon-Reid’s book “On Juneteenth,” that’s exactly what happened.
This is difficult information to learn, and I imagine especially so for white people. Does the potential discomfort of learning this mean that it should not be taught? Of course not!
To be sure, conveying these violent actions of white people as indicative of an inherent oppressive nature would be wrong. This is one of the concerns that led to passing House Bill 3979 in Texas that limits discussion on race and slavery. Fortunately, I have never heard any presentation of Juneteenth that disproportionately focuses on the violent reactions of white people during that time. The spirit of celebrating Juneteenth is joy and should not be mired in negative distractions that take the focus off Black freedom.
As we celebrate Juneteenth, let us not take for granted our opportunity and freedom to learn more about this important part of American history. Discussions about Juneteenth along with the history of race and racism in this country are beneficial and necessary for our collective civic literacy.
Kevin Cokley is the University Diversity and Social Transformation professor and Associate Chair of Diversity Initiatives in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan. He is also a longtime member of the National Council of Black Studies.
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